This is the Africa I am learning all over again. She is tired and broken, riddled with bullet holes and shot through with despair. Her men sit by the side of the road because they have nowhere else to go. Her women pick through piles of garbage as they seek to find their way again. It is too much.
Even so, amidst the darkness, a light is shining. We screen on Monday. The wards open on Wednesday. Hope and healing are coming back to Liberia. And we will remind her children of God's unwavering love.
I'm Ali; twenty-six years old, and married to Phil, an electrician, also known as The Husband of Joy (HoJ for short). I work as an assistant ward supervisor on board the world's largest non-governmental hospital ship, the M/V Africa Mercy. Following the example of Jesus, Mercy Ships seeks to bring hope and healing to the forgotten poor. Since 1978, Mercy Ships has performed more than 33,000 surgeries. We've removed cataracts, straightened club feet and reconstructed faces. I spend my days supporting the nurses in the middle of a delightful whirl of crying babies, cast-footed kids, and even the occasional grownup. I've never been so happy. (If comments aren't working, you can contact me at alirae[at]quist[dot]ca.)